8 CFR 210.1 - Definition of terms used in this part.

(a)Act. The Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.

(b)ADIT. Alien Documentation, Identification and Telecommunications card, Form I-89. Used to collect key data concerning an alien. When processed together with an alien's photographs, fingerprints and signature, this form becomes the source document for generation of Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card.

(c)Application period. The 18-month period during which an application for adjustment of status to that of a temporary resident may be accepted, begins on June 1, 1987, and ends on November 30, 1988.

(e)Determination process.Determination process as used in this part means reviewing and evaluating all information provided pursuant to an application for the benefit sought and making a determination thereon. If fraud, willful misrepresentation of a material fact, a false writing or document, or any other activity prohibited by section 210(b)(7) of the Act is discovered during the determination process the Service shall refer the case to a U.S. Attorney for possible prosecution.

(f)Family unity. The term family unity as used in section 210(c)(2)(B)(i) of the Act means maintaining the family group without deviation or change. The family group shall include the spouse, unmarried minor children who are not members of some other household, and parents who reside regularly in the household of the family group.

(j)Man-day. The term man-day means the performance during any day of not less than one hour of qualifying agricultural employment for wages paid. If employment records relating to an alien applicant show only piece rate units completed, then any day in which piece rate work was performed shall be counted as a man-day. Work for more than one employer in a single day shall be counted as no more than one man-day for the purposes of this part.

(1) Evidence or information which shows on its face that the applicant is admissible to the United States or, if inadmissible, that the applicable grounds of excludability may be waived under the provisions of section 210(c)(2)(i) of the Act,

(2) Evidence or information which shows on its face that the applicant performed at least 90 man-days of qualifying employment in seasonal agricultural services during the twelve-month period from May 1, 1985 through May 1, 1986, and

(3) Documentation which establishes a reasonable inference of the performance of the seasonal agricultural services claimed by the applicant.

(l)Overseas processing office. Overseas processing offices are offices outside the United States at which applications for adjustment to temporary resident status as a special agricultural worker are received, processed, referred to the Service for adjudication or denied. The Secretary of State has designated for this purpose the United States Embassy at Mexico City, and in all other countries the immigrant visa issuing of office at which the alien, if an applicant for an immigrant visa, would make such application. Consular officers assigned to such offices are authorized to recommend approval of an application for special agricultural worker status to the Service if the alien establishes eligibility for approval and to deny such an application if the alien fails to establish eligibility for approval or is found to have committed fraud or misrepresented facts in the application process.

(m)Preliminary application. A preliminary application is defined as a fully completed and signed application with fee and photographs which contains specific information concerning the performance of qualifying employment in the United States, and identifies documentary evidence which the applicant intends to submit as proof of such employment. The applicant must be otherwise admissible to the United States and must establish to the satisfaction of the examining officer during an interview that his or her claim to eligibility for special agriculture worker status is credible.

(n)Public cash assistance.Public cash assistance means income or needs-based monetary assistance. This includes but is not limited to supplemental security income received by the alien or his immediate family members through federal, state, or local programs designed to meet subsistence levels. It does not include assistance in kind, such as food stamps, public housing, or other non-cash benefits, nor does it include work-related compensation or certain types of medical assistance (Medicare, Medicaid, emergency treatment, services to pregnant women or children under 18 years of age, or treatment in the interest of public health).

(p)Qualifying agricultural employment.Qualifying agricultural employment means the performance of “seasonal agricultural services” described at section 210(h) of the Act as that term is defined in regulations by the Secretary of Agriculture at 7 CFR part 1d.

(q)Regional processing facility. Regional Processing Facilities are Service offices established in each of the four Service regions to adjudicate, under the authority of the Directors of the Regional Processing Facilities, applications for adjustment of status under sections 210 and 245a of the Act.

This final rule adopts, without change, interim amendments to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulations which were published in the Federal Register on March 27, 2013, as CBP Dec. No. 13-06. These amendments enabled DHS to transition the issuance of the Form I-94 (Arrival/Departure Record) to an automated process. In the automated process, DHS creates a Form I-94 in an electronic format based on passenger, passport and visa information DHS obtains electronically from air and sea carriers and the Department of State (DOS) as well as through the inspection process. This document addresses the comments received in response to the interim rule and discusses some operational modifications to the Form I-94 process that were implemented after publication of the interim rule.

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, DHS

Interim final rule.

Effective date: This interim rule is effective April 26, 2013. In the event that CBP receives public comment that identifies a credible basis for the Agency to conclude that automation of the form I-94 should be delayed, CBP retains discretion to extend implementation for an additional thirty days. If CBP concludes that such extension is appropriate, the Agency will post the new implementation date on its Web site, www.cbp.gov, no later than April 29, 2013. Comment date: Written comments must be submitted on or before April 26, 2013.

The Form I-94 is issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to certain aliens and is used for various purposes such as documenting status in the United States, the approved length of stay, and departure. DHS generally issues the Form I-94 to aliens at the time they lawfully enter the United States. This rule adds a new definition of the term “Form I-94” that includes the collection of arrival/departure and admission or parole information by DHS, whether in paper or electronic format. The definition also clarifies various terms that are associated with the use of the Form I-94 to accommodate an electronic version of the Form I-94. This rule also adds a valid, unexpired nonimmigrant DHS admission or parole stamp in a foreign passport to the list of documents designated as evidence of alien registration. These revisions to the regulations will enable DHS to transition to an automated process whereby DHS will create a Form I-94 in an electronic format based on passenger, passport and visa information DHS currently obtains electronically from air and sea carriers and the Department of State as well as through the inspection process.